Notebook
For my notebook, I wanted to document all of my travels, so I made the notebook as a travel theme. Part of the requirements for this project was to engrave part of the notebook. I engraved my name and a map of the world on the front of the notebook. Another requirement, was to cut out a part of the notebook. I cut out a design on the back. To make this notebook, I used Illustrator, and the laser cutter. After the covers were finished, I placed paper inside, and connected everything using a spiral.
Steps:
To complete this assignment I needed to design the notebook in Illustrator. I set up the two pieces I needed as a 4.25 by 5.5 inch rectangle. I then designed the notebook and expanded the swirl design and made it red so it would cut out. I moved the file from Illustrator to the computer in the lab. In the lab I set up the laser, and cut the notebook. Once it was done cutting, I hole punched the notebook and put the spirals in the holes.
To complete this assignment I needed to design the notebook in Illustrator. I set up the two pieces I needed as a 4.25 by 5.5 inch rectangle. I then designed the notebook and expanded the swirl design and made it red so it would cut out. I moved the file from Illustrator to the computer in the lab. In the lab I set up the laser, and cut the notebook. Once it was done cutting, I hole punched the notebook and put the spirals in the holes.
Water Bottle
For my water bottle, I wanted it to represent my second home, Spain. I traveled there the past summer, and many of my friends live there. I chose an image of Spain, wrote home on it, added an image of a heart, and wrote my name at the bottom. I took an image of Spain and a heart from the internet and saved it to my computer. Then I opened the images in Illustrator and created the overall image for my water bottle. I took the file and engraved the water bottle using the laser cutter.
Steps:
To complete this assignment, I needed to design what I wanted on my water bottle in Illustrator. Once I was done with the design, I needed to rotate the image 90 degrees to engrave the water bottle correctly. In order for all of the images to transfer to the ucp, I needed to package the file. When the file was packaged, I took the file into the lab. To set up the laser, I took out the table in the laser, and set in the rotational jig. I set the laser to where I wanted it to engrave the water bottle, and pressed play.
To complete this assignment, I needed to design what I wanted on my water bottle in Illustrator. Once I was done with the design, I needed to rotate the image 90 degrees to engrave the water bottle correctly. In order for all of the images to transfer to the ucp, I needed to package the file. When the file was packaged, I took the file into the lab. To set up the laser, I took out the table in the laser, and set in the rotational jig. I set the laser to where I wanted it to engrave the water bottle, and pressed play.
Thingiverse
For my thingiverse project, I chose a lantern from thingiverse and customized it. I placed images about soccer in pentagons, and wrote "soccer" and "love" and placed them in pentagons. I chose what images or words I wanted to cut out or engrave using Illustrator. After taking the file from thingiverse to Illustrator, I took the file into the lab. There, I engraved and cut out the lantern using the laser cutter.
Steps:
For the thingiverse assignment, I chose a project from thingiverse and downloaded all of the files. I took the files and extracted them, so they would open in Illustrator. In Illustrator, I placed images and text to be cut out and engraved. I then packaged the image and transferred it to the lab. In the lab, I placed a piece of cardboard in the laser, opened the file, and pressed play. The last step for this project, was to glue it. I glued all of the tabs together to form a ball/lantern.
For the thingiverse assignment, I chose a project from thingiverse and downloaded all of the files. I took the files and extracted them, so they would open in Illustrator. In Illustrator, I placed images and text to be cut out and engraved. I then packaged the image and transferred it to the lab. In the lab, I placed a piece of cardboard in the laser, opened the file, and pressed play. The last step for this project, was to glue it. I glued all of the tabs together to form a ball/lantern.
What I Learned
Throughout my time with the laser, I learned many things while creating three projects. When creating the notebook, I learned how to cut two objects on the same art board, how to hole punch the cardboard, and put in the spirals. When creating the water bottle, I learned how to package a file from Illustrator and rotate an image in Illustrator. I learned how to engrave a water bottle by using a rotational jig and setting up the ucp differently with a rotated image. When creating the thingiverse project, I learned how to take a file and extract it to be able to open it up in Illustrator. I also learned how to engrave the first layer of cardboard, and cut the second layer.